Dance For Your Life
by pensandpixiedust
Summary: When Elena has a dangerous dream about Damon, things steam up, problems arise, and Elena and Damon's relationship will never be the same.
1. The First Dream

The blindingly white lights of our school gym were replaced with a huge disco ball and colored lights, but aside from these lights, the area was dark. Very dark. All around, the students in the school were clustered in groups, dancing to the hypnotic sound that was blaring out of the speakers. The same thing was going on in the hallways, in every classroom, in the office and outside on the field. The whole school was dancing, the whole world dimmed and sparkled noticeably, putting everyone who saw it and experienced it into a trance a hypnotized state.

Everyone was dressed up, the boys in dress shirts pulled loose from their chests, untucked. Every girl wore a tight or slinky dress with shoes too high to even be able to stand on, much less dance with. Every guy and girl had a match, they danced-or groped-each other hungrily, going mad to the music, expressing the mental instability through their bodies, taking advantage of the other person. Some of the boys tried to escape the girls, some of the girls tried to escape the boys. Some of the pairs were happy with what they were doing. Then, as I walked through the halls, wearing my blue-green dress and blissfully flat ballet shoes with my dark hair flowing down my back, I realized what the music was doing-showing us our inner selves, describing to us who we were and what we would do if we had no self control over ourselves. It was... barbaric, inhuman. The people in my school were monsters. Even the teachers were participating, and quite happily as well. As I passed my homeroom class, I felt a warm, slick hand touch my waist lightly.

I immediately entered self defence mode, and turned around slowly to make sure I knew who I was about to put in place. I was met with a face I knew far too well, looking down at me with far too much emotion. Too much... caring. Love. He has no control over himself right now, I thought, he can't help but show his feelings. I couldn't think of what to do fast enough, because before long his hand lay on my face, cupping my cheek. I was acutely aware of the pounding of the music, how it matched the beating of my heart, the pounding grew louder and more noticeable. His eyes closed...

As mine abruptly opened. I sat up in my bed, the vivid dream and clear sound of the music still beating in my head, imprinted forever on my eyes. And the boy, the boy I had seen, the boy who'd looked down at me so tenderly, wasn't just a figment of my imagination. The boys and girls that were dancing, the teachers, my school... they were all so realistic. But my dream wasn't, I thought. It wasn't. But then why was every little detail so exact, down to the numbers on the classroom doors, the plaques, the dresses. They were exactly how they were in real life, exactly how I'd seen them. And the boy, his eyes, his face, his clothes, his intoxicating smell, his warm hand, first on my waist then my cheek. I know his name, there's no way I could forget it, or him.

Out loud, I said: "Damon."


	2. Trusting Damon

Elena Gilbert woke up bright and early, ready for the start of a new day, before she remembered the dream she'd had that night.

"Ugh, bright new day be damned." She muttered, then fell back into her blankets and pillows.

"Aw, don't be such a sour puss! Up and at 'em, Elena! Come on!" Elena hid her face, and burrowed deeper into her blankets so Damon couldn't see how red it was. Dream or not, she felt awkward looking at him now that she saw how his eyes could change if he looked at her. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she forgot about Damon trying to wake her up right now, and since nothing had worked, he was trying a new technique. So, he got up off the bed, started stretching, then sat right on Elena's back.

"AH, Damon get off!"

"Only if you get up!" They had both laughed themselves tired, so when Elena agreed to getting up, Damon had collapsed on her bed, where she had previously slept.

"No fair, you get to sleep but I have to get up?"

"I didn't say it would be fair, did I? Though I will say... it'll be worth it." He smirked. "Trust me." Elena sighed.

"Okay, but I need to make my bed, so get up." He gracefully got up, made the bed himself, then walked out my door.

"Oh, and Elena?"

"Yes?"

"Wear the red turtle neck. It looks nice on you." I raised my eyebrows as he used his vampire speed to make it down the stairs then out the door.

Elena had been walking out the door, with her black boots on and red beret when she'd seen Damon and Caroline standing next to his car.

"Hey, Elena! Nice hat." Caroline smiled then flicked the top with her finger.

"Thank you. Yours looks adorable too." Both girls were wearing matching berets. _Ah, the irony_, thought Elena.

"As much as I love to discuss fashion with two girls, Elena and I really have got something to do. So, Barbie, if you could be so kind as to-"

"Maybe catch up with us later? Call or text if you need anything, if there are any problems, okay?" Caroline nodded, winked at me then put an expression on her face expressively saying; _tell me everything after! _Elena smiled, rolled her eyes, and nodded. Caroline squealed, and before Elena could comment, zoomed out of my yard.

"So, what are we doing today? Are you planning on telling me?" Damon, who had beendrumming on the hood of his car during the girls' brief exchange, grinned and pulled me into his car.

"Patience, princess, you'll see!"

"We're not going to be tracking Klaus or Stefan or whoever other nut job vampire is town now, are we?" Elena playfully sulked. Damon chuckled then sighed.

"Nope, this will be more fun! Trust me!"

After what felt like a lifetime of driving, the pulled over and parked.

"What is this place?" Elena asked in wonder.

"I used to come here all the time with Stefan, when we were younger and could tolerate each other's presence." They were standing in the middle of a huge field, with a modest pond that had little animals around it, swimming in it.

"It's beautiful." Elena whispered. She looked over at Damon, saw how devastated he looked, and thought about how much he must miss his brother. She walked over to him and put her arms around his waist, and he rested his arm over her shoulders.

"I really wish that Stefan wasn't such a lost cause, Elena, so I could get him back. I'm sorry." I shook my head, then laughed.

"Damon, don't worry about it. It's not like its hell being stuck with you. If anything, you were always better than Stefan. In a crisis, with friends, with conversations, any moment you had to think of something, and fast. You did all you could. We just have to move on. If he wanted to come back, he would've. Nothing, not Klaus, not even compulsion, would've been able to get in his way. He would've come back, and he would've fought if he had to, if he really had wanted to. But he didn't. So really, don't blame yourself Damon. You didn't do anything wrong."

"I would've come back, Elena. And I would've killed Klaus on the way, too." Damon whispered against Elena's hair.

"I know you would've. I don't doubt it for a second." Damon smiled, then released all of Elena besides my hand. He had that mischievous glint in his blue eyes that meant he had an idea.

"What? What do you have planned?"

"Nothing bad. Trust me." He smiled, placed my on his shoulders, then tossed both of them in the water.

_I can get used to this, _Elena thought, _trusting Damon._ And they dug deeper into the pond.


	3. Normal

By the time Damon and Elena made it back to the Boarding House they were exhausted and dripping wet from their "dip" in the pond. They both had a wonderful time, they both understood their need for a normal, fun day without worrying about the supernatural business that had slowly but noticeably started to take over their lives. Elena is only 18, Damon thought, it's not fair that she has so much on her plate. But then, who would've thought that any of this would've happened when everything had been stable and calm for years? Who would've thought that one human could've started this chain of events?

_But Elena isn't just a human_. Not to Damon, that is. To Damon, she is so much more than just one life or soul; she's better, she's...

"Daaa-mooon!" Elena's voice cut into him, and he was jerked out of his thoughts abruptly.

"My oh my Elena, your voice brings tears to the eyes." His words were sarcastic, but his smile was genuine. She walked into the room, wearing flannel pyjama bottoms too big on her waist, though tied in the front to be kept in place. Her long brown hair was dried and smelled like berries, and the shirt she wore was one of his, also too big on her. Yet she looked... cute. Pretty, even. No not pretty, better than pretty.

"Well, what do you think?" She turned around slowly so Damon could get the full effect of her image. She heard him swallow.

"Lovely. You should be walking on a runway." Elena winked at him, then remembered her dream and immediately blushed. _I shouldn't be acting like that_, Elena thought. She took a deep breath then walked over to where Damon was sitting, and sat next to him. He had already showered as well, he smelled clean, he smelled like pine needles and mint.

"Mmm." Elena leaned into his side, resting her head on his chest. "Damon?" She murmured.

"Yes, princess?" Elena smiled at the nickname.

"Thank you for today." She felt Damon smile against the side of her cheek, felt his warm hand resting on her side, his chest rising and falling.

"Don't mention it. Friends, right?"

"_Just _friends?" It came out without Elena's permission, sounding almost... devastated? Damon jerked, then slowly raised his head. Elena's came up at the same time, gazing into his blue ones, reading the confusion, the surprise, the... happiness? Then he sighed, lowered his face to hers, and their foreheads touched. He rubbed his nose against hers. Her eyes closed and she relaxed into him.

"You don't know how much I wish we could be more." His voice was little more than a whisper.

"What if," Elena began, "What would happen if I wanted the same thing?" Her tone matched his.

"That's what scares me. I don't even know." He sighed, his lips inches from hers, his head turning to the side...

"How... adorable." We turned out faces to see Alaric standing awkwardly in the doorway.

"You're telling me." I replied, dryly, more than a little disappointment leak into my voice. Damon chuckled.

"Wonderful timing, my friend. What's wrong?" Alaric's face tightened.

"It's Bonnie. She... she closed the doorway to the Other Side... Jeremy can't see Anna anymore. To say he's not doing so well would be the understatement of the century." Elena's jaw dropped, Damon's grip on her tightened, and Alaric's face fell.

"Is he alright? Did he hurt himself?" Elena asked. She already lost Jenna; she can't lose Jeremy too.

"I think he lost his head. He keeps going on about some dream about you and Damon, about your school going mad, dancing like animals, turning to monsters. He said that things are changing, that people are changing. He's saying that..."

"What's he saying, Alaric?" Damon coaxed.

"He's saying Elena isn't human anymore." Elena was beyond quiet now. He had described the dream she had had last night, Alaric had just spoken about it, had even mentioned both Damon and Elena by _name_.

"Look, you two, I know you were just getting... comfortable, but we should really go see him. Now. He said he needs to talk to both of you, he said that you guys would be the only ones to understand what he's saying. He sounds fine, he looks fine. What he's saying is the only thing that sounds off. Will you come?" Damon glanced at Elena, she nodded, and they both got up and walked out the door behind Alaric. Alaric insisted on driving, but Damon chose to hold on to Elena and use his speed to get them there in record time.

"Gosh, Damon, things can never stay normal for longer than a couple hours, can they?" Damon shook his head.

"I'm sorry princess, but no, I don't think they can."


	4. Supernatural Problems

As Elena and Damon walked into Jeremy's room, they couldn't see what had caused Alaric so much distress until they heard Jeremy speak.

"Elena, you and Damon look weird." They immediately glanced over at each other and realized how close to each they were standing. Damon shook his head then moved slightly away. Elena huffed in frustration, and pouted when she heard Damon chuckle.

"Look who's talking, Gilbert. Alaric says you're losing your head."

"Don't look so disapproving. Of Elena ever got taken away from you, you wouldn't be entirely sane either. Before Stefan left you were a raging lunatic." Damon smirked.

"Takes one to know one, Gilbert. What's this dream you're going on about?"

"Elena knows." Damon turned to Elena, eyebrows raised. Elena turned her face towards Jeremy's.

"Goodnight, Jer." Elena walked out of the room, unable to tell whether Damon was following behind her, or already waiting comfortably on her bed.

"So, when exactly were you planning on telling me about this dream of yours?" Elena scoffed and turned around, leaning her hip against her bedroom door.

"Since when do I describe my dreams to you, Damon?"

"I make you aware of all of mine. I kind of figured you'd do the same."

"Well, it wasn't exactly... proper." Elena grimaced at how she sounded; flustered, nervous. Damon laughed.

"Well, I'm not proper! Go on, tell me about it." Elena sighed, opened her door and sat down. Damon did the same, looking at her expectantly. Elena described the dream to him, not looking at him as she described the ending. Damon sat there and listened to it, unable to understand this dream could mean so much. Then he realized that of course it would; Jeremy had spoken to Bonnie.

When Elena had finished, Damon thought over the dream.

"Elena?"

"Yes?"

"We have to speak to Bonnie." Elena nodded; she had thought they'd have to anyway. Damon got up and left the room, turning around in the doorway.

"You coming, princess?" Elena sighed, then got up.

"I'm really tired of all these supernatural problems."


	5. Sleep Comes Every Night

Bonnie hadn't been normal. Her usually black, shiny hair was in disarray, much like her room. Her grimoire was wide open. Elena couldn't read what was written on the pages.

"Hello Elena." Elena worked hard to keep from shivering. Bonnie's voice sounded like a recorded message-like a robot.

"Bonnie... what happened to you?" Bonnies lip was split, her nose bleeding.

"I was working on the banishing spell too hard." Elena shook her head.

"Why? Would you do that? Don't you care about Jeremy at all?"

"It had to be done. She had to go." Bonnie's gaze flicked to Damon standing in the doorway. "Don't you care about yourself, Elena? If you stay around Damon, you so obviously don't." The skin around Damon's eyes tightened.

"You're speaking in riddles, Bonnie. If you have to say something, spit it out." Damon said. Bonnie looked over at Elena.

"You heard him." Bonnie looked surprised, and then laughed.

"Becoming more like him each day, I see. Or, is it, becoming more yourself?"

"Bonnie, don't play games with me right now. If you won't give me a good enough answer I'll just leave."

"You wouldn't. You care too much."

"Right now, I care more about getting a good nights' sleep. Goodnight Bonnie." Bonnie looked shocked, then shrugged. Damon raised an eyebrow, but followed Elena out the door. Once they were safely out the door and in the car once more, Damon spoke.

"If you have another one of those dreams, let me know."

"Damon?"

"Yes?"

"Be honest with me. Did you have the dream, too?" Damon's smirk vanished.

"Elena..."

"Damon. Did you?"

"It was just a dream, a coincidence-"

"No! It means something! If Jeremy knows, it Bonnie knows, if they think I'm not entirely human anymore, it can't just be a dream, and it cannot just be a coincidence! Think about this from the supernatural point of view, Damon. Stranger things have surely happened."

"What are you saying, huh, Elena? That we go digging around in our subconscious together? That we try to make something out of nothing?"

"I'm saying that we shouldn't rule out-"

"Rule out what? What theory do you possibly have at this point?"

"We both had the same dream, now we're hearing about from Jeremy _and _Bonnie, and you don't think this is weird? It means something, Damon, it does!" Elena enunciated her last sentence so Damon would get the full impact of her words.

"It wasn't the same as yours, Elena. You had no control over yourself, what you had described as what I was doing was-in my dream-what you'd been doing. Our roles were reversed."

"So? We had the _same dream! _I'm telling you, it means something. It does." Damon looked away. "Damon. Look at me!" Damon turned his head.

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

"What am I supposed to say? You know how I feel about you, Elena, you do. You know what it would mean if it truly did have a meaning, and I don't think that you're ready to accept it." Elena scoffed.

"Yeah, and that would totally add up to why I'm pushing this right now. It's for me to decide what I'm ready for, Damon. How do you know that I'm not?" Damon turned towards me.

"I'm going to get you home now. I can't talk about this right now."

"What if I wanted to stay at the Boarding House?"

"What'd you think I was talking about?" Damon smirked, then started his car. Elena sat with a triumphant smile on her face, and Damon wondered what on earth had made smile as if she had won a prize. Once they had come back to the house, Damon got out then went to open the door for Elena. She smiled appreciatively, and they both walked in together.

"Damon?"

"Yes?"

"It's been a long day, hasn't it?"

"Yeah, it has."

"Do you want to go sleep now?"

"Do you?"

"I don't think I can." Damon's expression became alarmed.

"Why not?"

"I'm upset, Damon. I can't not say anything anymore. Stefan's gone to get revenge on Klaus, Jeremy's lost his head, Bonnie isn't clear headed anymore... and I'm confused. About everything. And through it all you're here and you're wonderful and supportive, and I swear I have no idea what I would do without you. Just this afternoon we were having so much fun, we were surrounded by peace, and it was one of those rare days that nothing awful seemed to happen. But it didn't last, it never does, and Jeremy's right; if I'm no longer human, I wouldn't be surprised. I don't feel human, much less normal, anymore. But you always help, you always _have _and I've already lost so much Damon, I don't know how much more I can take anymore, I just can't..." Elena's voice broke off, and Damon took her under his arm into the house quickly, and handed her a tissue.

"Elena, you'll never have to worry about losing me."

"That's what Edward Cullen said to Bella Swan in the first book before he left in the second one. She turned into someone that looked like they were near comatose, but he still didn't come back because he thought he was protecting her. If you pull that crap on me, if leave me in the middle of this in an attempt to be noble, I swear I will-"

"I'm not Edward Cullen, alright? What are we living in now, a book? A movie? Yeah, thing's are hard right now. They'll get better, Elena. No one expects you to stay strong all the time. You need to let out some steam." Elena raised an eyebrow, then sniffled.

"Okay, okay." Elena was starting to feel embarrassed.

"So, do you wanna watch a movie? We've got Netflix! Yay!" Damon smiled when Elena laughed.

"Sure. But if you're tired, just tell me, okay? I don't want you to lose out on sleep because of me."

"Sleep comes every night, but you don't." Elena shrugged as they settled on the couch, and before long, noticed Damon's eyes close. His head was on her lap, and she didn't move to slip it off. Instead, she brushed some of his raven hair out of his eyes, and stroked his suddenly warm face. A slight smile appeared on her lips, almost affectionate.

Then she blacked out, swallowed up by an intense dream, pulsing with the beat of the hypnotic music that she and Damon had shared, only to encounter the face she had been admiring just moments ago dressed cleanly in his white dress shirt, the colourful lights casting shadows over his features as they turned down to hers. She realized with a shock that she was in Damon's dream that she had tunnelled into it as effortlessly as if it was her own. _Oh my god, _she thought, _he's going to kiss me. _And she was mildly surprised that she was... excited. _How are we going to get out of this dream? _She thought with a start. _Oh my god... _


	6. Homework

_Damon didn't remember falling asleep. He remembered Elena sitting with him watching some chick flick on Netflix, though not minding one bit because Elena was right next to him. He remembered resting his head in her lap because his eyes started to feel heavy, he remembered Elena's fingers moving lightly over his cheek bones. He remembered Elena's head falling on his shoulder rather heavily, and was about to get up to check on her, before his dream swallowed him whole. He had a weird feeling that Elena had been included in the gulping as well. _

_He was abruptly wrapped up in the pounding of the music, dancing and moving through the crowd to get to Elena, to dance with her, to feel her slight body against his, to be with her and to enjoy the feeling of the sweat washing away their worries. When he'd seen her, he couldn't help himself. He'd ran the rest of the way, then when he'd found himself standing directly in front of her, gazed at her face, deep in her eyes. They were surrounded by black kohl, making her thick lashes that much more prominent. She looked like a warrior, like a temptress. Like a goddess. She was irresistibly beautiful. So naturally, he couldn't understand why, he started to move his lips over hers, bending neck down, down, down…_

_Until they met warm, soft skin. The skin on her lips. They parted easily, inviting him to continue holding her, kissing her. Her hand rested on his, where it was holding her face, and stroked it. Damon's breath came in gasps as he expertly worked his mouth against hers, and she responded well. When her breathing turned too ragged, he released her, and he took note that she leaned forward when he leaned away. Then she stroked his bottom lip, and whispered to herself._

"_Oh my god…" At her words, he jerked awake, face to face with the Elena in his reality, and saw her only waking. Her cheeks were a bright crimson. As Elena raised her head, she uttered 3 words._

"_Oh my god…" _

"_Tell me about it." Elena took a ragged breath. _

"_What do we do?"_

"_We find things out."_

"_How do we do that?"_

"_No idea." _

Elena was breathless by the time Damon and she had talked things out_._ Neither of them had wanted to, but they'd have to go back to Bonnie to talk things out, ask her what she knew. And they really didn't speak to Jeremy, maybe Jeremy had some information? Neither of them knew whether Alaric knew something about this type of "mind control", for lack of a better word. Elena would have a constant stream of butterflies going on in her stomach; just being around Damon, just having Damon's shocking blue eyes on her… they sent her insides into a frenzy. Weird, had she ever felt this way around Stefan? She loved Stefan, but was she ever _in _love with him? Things were always so heavy around him, and they had always been so intense around each other.

With Damon, the feeling was always there, and it was always so hard to ignore. It wasn't ever unpleasant, just flustering. She was sure-with Damon's enhanced hearing-that he could immediately see through her, that he could see the butterflies in her stomach wreaking havoc on her insides. And that added to her nervousness. But she loved the feeling, she loved-what? She swore for a moment she would say she loves him. But she doesn't. Does she?

"Elena? Are you alright?" Damon called after her. She took one last look at herself in the mirror, checked whether her blue blouse was straight, that her jeans weren't too low, that her laces were tied, that her hair was straight and brushed, before she left Damon's washroom. He was wearing a black t-shirt and jeans, paired with his black leather jacket. His usual. When she walked out, he looked down at his shoes.

"Ready?"

"As I'll ever be." Elena sighed as she walked out the door, Damon following closely at her heels.

"Do you think we'll find anything out?" Elena was puzzled at his worried tone, then figured it was her turn to be nonchalant and sarcastic.

"That bad dreaming about, huh?" She grinned at him, and he actually managed to look embarrassed.

"Ha ha, very funny."

"We'll figure it out, Damon. Don't worry." Elena couldn't be sarcastic; Damon seemed worried, she had to answer seriously.

"You think so?"

"I know so. We always do." Damon nodded; he suddenly felt very empty, very lost, without his baby bro. Then Elena reached over and put her hand on his knee as he drove out the driveway, and the feeling was gone.

Once Elena and Damon had made it to Bonnie's, they suddenly felt a little cautious. Hopefully she'd returned to herself a bit since last night. They knocked on her door, then stood awkwardly waiting at the door.

"Who is it?" Came Bonnie's cheerful voice.

"The pizza man!" Damon said, sarcastically. Elena smiled against her will, and Damon nudged her with a smile of his own. The door opened, and they returned to their original positions.

"Bonnie…" Before Elena could continue, Bonnie hugged her.

"Elena, I'm so sorry, I don't know what got in to me last night. I should've answered our questions." Elena shook her head with a kind smile on her face.

"Don't worry about it. But would you mind answering a few now? Preferably not here, we've been cooped up too long." Bonnie nodded.

"Just let me get my coat." Bonnie went in her house for a moment, then came out with her jacket slung over her arm. She locked her door, then turned to them with a look only described as concern on her face. Damon shifted uncomfortably.

"Things don't look too good for you two."

"Me and Damon?"

"No, you and Stefan. Klaus has left you and Damon alone for a while now, too wrapped with Stefan, and Stefan has left you and Damon alone for a while now too. You and Damon are the result of both those things. You understand what I'm saying, don't you?" Elena glanced back at Damon, and they both nodded.

"The dreams are clearly showing a connection, but I'm sure that's what you've both already figured out. But they're showing more. They're showing how specific things-the pulsing music, specifically-affects the people around you. I've had the dreams, too. But in them, I'm not you or Damon, though I inevitably spot you two, and I inevitably try to get to you. If you ask Jeremy, he'll say he's getting them, too. It might be showing the future, maybe somebody is causing us to see them, don't ask me how." Elena sighed, then rubbed the tense muscles in her neck. Damon spoke first.

"That sounds complicated. What do you suggest we do?" Bonnie shrugged.

"Leave it alone for now. I really don't know where to go from here. Wait until you have another one of your dreams; maybe you'll see a clue then." Elena nodded.

"Thank you Bonnie." Bonnie nodded, then went back in her house.

"How are we going to figure anything out?" Damon shrugged.

"We sleep."

"I thought you said you didn't want to go digging through our subconscious together." Elena raised an eyebrow. Damon smirked.

"It doesn't matter what I want, does it?" Somehow, Damon's words felt like they had a double meaning. Elena shrugged.

"I don't really want to either." Damon sighed.

"Sleeping isn't that great anymore is it?"

"Why's that?"

"Because of the dreams."

"I don't mind the dreams so much."

"So, dreaming about me is that good isn't it?" Damon winked at me, I laughed.

"Are you staying at the Boarding House again tonight?" Elena nodded.

"I just need to stop by the house to get some more clothes and some homework. I've got a paper due Wednesday."

"Aw, but it's only Sunday." Damon pouted. Elena laughed.

"Yeah, and if it doesn't get done today it won't get done ever!" Damon hip bumped Elena, and Elena hip bumped Damon. They went home in good spirits, laughing and joking together as if that's the way things were and always will be.


	7. The Long Anticipated Date

The dreams hadn't returned for every night that week. Elena handed in her paper, Damon continued to tell his jokes and spin his tales. Things were good, they were quiet. And it felt good for Elena and Damon, because they needed the calmness and the happiness. They needed a break. So Damon decided to take Elena out, decided that they needed to spend time somewhere outside the Boarding House. As friends, of course. But what Damon had planned to do was not anything a friend did to another friend. Not that he knew of, anyway.

Elena was happy. She'd spent many days-and many nights-of the week at the boarding house with Damon. Things had died down, both were happy. Elena felt she'd been neglecting her friends, so 2 hours before Damon and her needed to meet up, she'd called Bonnie and Caroline to talk at her house.

"So, Elena, I hear you and Damon have gotten close." Caroline grinned and winked at Elena. Elena sighed.

"Well, you've heard right." Bonnie's jaw playfully dropped open and she smiled.

"Eeeee, I knew it!" Elena laughed, but couldn't deny anything. They had gotten close. Why lie about it when everybody clearly noticed?

"But don't get ahead of yourselves, guys! We're still worried that the dreams will come back. We didn't know what to make of them at first, we certainly don't now considering we hadn't had any more." Caroline sighed.

"Listen Elena, outside of the fantasy-supernatural-you-dating-his-brother thing, you can't deny it-you're in deep with him. Quit worrying about something you're not even sure about!"

"Are we talking about me not being sure about Damon, or me not being sure about the dreams here?" Caroline cocked her head sympathetically.

"We're going somewhere in 2 hours together anyway. Maybe my mind will be cleared up after we go out." Bonnie and Caroline exploded.

"How could you not tell us-your most trusted, supernaturally enhanced best friends-that you're going on a date with Damon?" They exclaimed, simultaneously.

"Because I knew this would be your reaction!"

"Elena, this is serious! What are you going to wear? Go with a dress. Nothing too tight, nothing too loose. You don't wanna look like a slut, but you also don't wanna look like a bag lady!"

"I'll let you guys help me out with that later! You act like I haven't stressed about this myself already!"

"We share your stress, we're linked together due to theoretical sisterly bonds!" Elena smiled at them.

"Aside from the topic of Damon… what about you guys? Have you heard from Tyler, Caroline?"

Caroline sighed. "I can't… I don't want to deal with him being sired to the very same original that wanted to kill us a million or two times right now. I don't know how I can deal with it."

"You really should talk to him. Have a conversation about it. No raised voices, just talking out your problems and thinking of a game plan." Bonnie, said. Elena nodded, agreeing with her witch best friend. Caroline shrugged, then switched topics.

"How about you, Bonnie? Have you spoken to Jeremy?" It was Bonnie's turn to sigh.

"I'm feeling really… bad. I exiled his ghost sweetheart, which was a bad move on my part. It makes me sad that he has to be sad because I was angry. And I'm an awesomely powerful witch." Bonnie added, to lighten the mood. She winked at the girls, and they all laughed.

"The problems we girls have, huh?" Elena commented. Bonnie smiled sympathetically.

"Hey! We need to plan your outfit and make up! Come on, Elena, up up!" Caroline and Bonnie rushed Elena to her room and closed the door. They opened her closet wide and examined every article of clothing in it. An hour and a half later, Elena was fully dressed. Bonnie and Caroline stepped back from Elena and grinned down at Elena.

"Done! Go check yourself out!" Elena stepped up to the mirror and smiled at her reflection. She was wearing a deep blue dress with spaghetti straps and a scoop neck. The effect was cute, not too dressy, not too casual.

"You guys are brilliant, thank you!" They girls hugged each other, and Elena had to wipe her eyes carefully from the tears so her makeup wouldn't smudge. Bonnie and Caroline pretended not to notice, but smoothed her hair down to calm her. They broke apart when they heard a knock on the door. Caroline rushed her down the stairs. Elena opened the door to see a very attractive looking Damon leaning against the door.

"Hi." Elena said with a smile.

"Hi." Damon grinned, then Elena grabbed her coat and rushed out the door.

"What do you have planned?" Elena asked, too curious to be patient.

"You'll see. You'll like it, I think." Elena smiled and glanced over at Damon, so concentrated on driving, his brows furrowed above his shockingly blue eyes. She admired his slim, yet muscular, arms, his thick raven hair, his long torso, his equally long legs, and remembered unbelievably attractive he was on the inside, as well as the outside. An affectionate smile took over her features, just as a surge of affectionate for this one man over took her. She cocked her head to the side and reached her hand over to Damon's, where it rested on the steering wheel. She laid it over his, and curled her fingers where his curled in surprise over the wheel.

Elena felt Damon's eyes on her, but she resisted the urge to look into them. She wasn't satisfied at all with the slight pressure of his fingers on hers, she desperately wanted more. She swallowed, at exactly the moment that Damon did. A couple minutes later, he'd parked on an area of greenery with-in the distance-a table for two surrounded by trimmed trees and a netting as thin and delicate as spider webs, shining and iridescent. Elena gasped.

"Do you like it?" Elena turned over to look at Damon, at his boyish grin, and nodded. Damon came out of the car, sped over to Elena's door, then opened it for her. She took his hand when he offered it to her. The netting split open easily, and glided against Elena's skin like silk. Damon pulled her chair out for her before taking his seat in front of her. She hadn't known how the food had appeared, but she knew that one second it wasn't there, and the next it was.

Damon noticed Elena's expression and laughed. She looked so enchanted by all of this, he knew it would be what she would like. She was a magical girl; of course she would love magical things. They ate their meal and talked about their day. He laughed exuberantly at the way Elena described her conversation with Bonnie and Caroline before their date. Damon tried to control his expression, but was thrilled when she'd called their outing a date. He didn't mention or correct her; he wanted it to be a date. It would make what he wanted to do easier. When she finished her meal, he asked her whether she wanted to take a walk. She nodded, and he chuckled at her excitement.

"It's so beautiful, Damon. Really, thank you. This was lovely." Elena smiled at him as she looped her arm through his.

Elena couldn't help herself from glancing at Damon constantly. She was suddenly afraid that he wasn't real, that he would disappear at any moment and that he'd take all his magic with him. She was surprised at how empty she felt at the thought of her being without a Damon. Suddenly, Damon stopped walking, when they were right under a beautiful tree with lights hanging from it. He moved to stand in front of her, and she looked up at him. She noticed how his vibrant blue eyes were lit up beautifully by the lanterns and the stars above them.

"There's no easy way to say this, and no way without sounding cheesy, but I'm surely going to find a way. You know how I feel about you, you know how I would save your ass a million times just so nothing would happen to you, even if you wanted to be with Stefan for all of eternity, and never even acknowledge. You know I would do anything for you, you know I think you're amazing and selfless and forgiving and strong. You're a fighter, Elena, and you're damn stubborn too. But you never shrink back from danger. I admire you so much, I really do. And I know I don't deserve you, I know you don't feel the same about me, but I can't not tell you this. You're beautiful and you put up with me, and you understand me, and you speak with me like I'm a person. No matter how many times I screw up, and I know, I _know, _that you deserve ten times better. But I have to do this." Elena had tried to catch her breath, but the second she could, Damon's lips came down on hers. And she couldn't push him away, because she didn't want to, because she was so wrapped up in him, in his scent, his strong arms and the bend of his shoulders. Her hand came to rest on top of his, holding it to her face so he wouldn't pull away.

She remembered the pulsing music from their dreams, the dancing and pull that everything had, as if everyone and everything were magnets, and found herself back in that dream, pressed against Damon, in flowing skirts and masks covering their faces. She groaned against his lips before she could stop herself. He pulled away then, and the both stood there for a moment, gazing at each other, trying to catch their breath.

"Did you see…" Damon, swallowed then nodded. Elena shook her head.

"I… wow." Elena bit her bottom lip, her gaze flicking between Damon's eyes and lips, his doing the same. He smirked at her words.

"Ready to go?" Elena hesitated, she didn't want to leave this place, so filled with magic.

"Will you take me back here another time?" Damon nodded, and Elena smiled.

"Okay, let's go." Damon released her face then tried to make his way back to the car. Elena grabbed his hand before he got too far, just so he didn't think that she needed space. As a matter of fact, if she was being truthful to herself, she wanted nothing more than for Damon to invade it. With her free hand, she ran her fingers over her bottom lip with a smile on her lips.

As they drove back to the Boarding House, Elena's smile didn't once leave her face, though it wasn't fully there. It was the ghost of a smile, the hint of something that wasn't meant to be seen but was still noticed. Damon smiled from time to time, too, though not making any effort to hide it. When Damon had parked outside the house, he didn't get out the car right away.

"So what now, then?" He asked. Elena took a breath.

"We need to figure things out. Without ruling out a relationship. And by relationship I don't mean a friendship." Elena said this without looking at Damon.

"Is this what you want?"

"Yes. Is this what you want?"

"Yes."

"Then we'll work on it." She looked at him then, smiled, kissed his cheek then spoke.

"Let's go watch some Netflix!" She exclaimed, then jumped out of the car humming with major gusto. Damon laughed out loud, but followed, pulling her along by the waist.

"Damon?"

"Yes?"

"What did that flash mean?"

"It wasn't like the dream; it was a different time. You were wearing a corset, I was wearing a suit. It was a masquerade ball."

"But the music was the same."

"No one else was in it but us."

"Kind of like tonight?"

"Exactly like tonight."

"This is weird, Damon, I don't like this."

"We need to figure it out, anyway." Elena nodded.

"We will."

"I don't think we have a choice." Damon's sigh echoed through the house as they settled down on the couch.


	8. Momentary Bliss

**One Month Later**

Damon couldn't stop holding Elena. The dreams weren't coming so often, but the flashes continued. Not only when they kissed or touched, but when they walked, when they spoke, when they laughed, when they so much as moved, they something in the hollows of their eyelids. They couldn't even explain why this was happening, or even what had caused it. It wasn't so much about the dreams anymore-it was way more than that-but it was about them, what had happened in them, what had changed. No one could make sense of it. Everyone else continued to have the same dreams. No one had seen Klaus or even seen one trace of Stefan in more than a month. So, what exactly, is going on with Mystic Falls and the supernatural aspects in it?

Elena yawned and turned herself onto her side, so she was facing Damon with her eyes still closed, so deep in sleep that she didn't realize there was another reality. Damon heard her groan and lick her lips with his advanced hearing and opened his eyes to find her looking like a dark angel. _How did I manage to live so long without her? _Elena's eyes opened and she smiled at Damon, nervous she had morning breath. Damon smiled back then inclined his head toward the washroom, apparently worrying about his breath, too. They got up together, took turns at the sink, then went to their designated showers. Damon took his time, thinking of how happy he was now that he woke up and went to bed with Elena. Unlike with other women, he didn't expect any kisses from Elena-he wanted them.

Elena couldn't help grinning while she dressed, she couldn't stop the happiness that came over her constantly. But she also couldn't stop the fear from being laced with her happiness constantly, and she couldn't stop the feeling of needing to be closer and closer with Damon. _Maybe you're just being a normal teenager? _She thought to herself. But she couldn't stop herself from thinking that maybe this wasn't normal, that maybe everything included with getting involved with vampires just wasn't normal. _Maybe I'm not normal. _Elena didn't mind, as long as Damon was being abnormal with her, as long as Damon wouldn't be too far. She kept that thought in mind as she closed her eyes and slipped-literally and figuratively-into her dream.

Damon heard a thump and immediately ran to Elena's bathroom to find her lying on the floor, passed out, still only in her towel. He immediately rushed to her side, only to be engulfed by the same dream that had pulled Elena under.

_Damon and Elena didn't feel like separate people, they felt when on moved and when the other didn't, they felt when one cried and when one smiled. It felt intensely uncomfortable yet normal. They felt that if they didn't have this connection, they'd feel naked, they'd feel empty. They'd feel like a part of them was physically not there. They were aware of the music, forever sounding like it had a life of its own, like it physically had a heart that created the strong pulse that hung in the air and formed a barely visible barrier between the couple and the rest of the crowd. _

_Elena couldn't distinguish her own thoughts from Damon's and she couldn't be sure whether it was because their thoughts were so alike, or whether it was because of how linked and almost compressed they felt. The fabric of her dress was riding up on her thighs because of the proximity of Damon's, and the heat they generated together, combined with the intensity of the music, was magnified in Damon's vivid blue eyes, as Elena was sure they were mirrored in her own. Elena's eyes fluttered, and she sighed unable to break herself away from Damon._

_Damon couldn't understand how the lust had begun to form in Elena's eyes, because the mess of thoughts in both their heads got rid of all concentration, but he had started to notice how little space was left between them, how they were very much invading each other's space, and how they were very much close to doing something they might come to regret. But Elena's eyes were showing something so different, and the look within them made Damon want to let go and break all the rules. As their faces came together, and their lips met, a jolt of electricity passed through them, into their skulls, through theirs ribs. A flash was imprinted in the hollows of their eyelids, and all rational thought escaped them. Then Stefan tour through the crowd, ripped them apart. Elena's fist came up, Damon's arm went around her waist, pulling her back…_

Elena gasped loudly, fought for air, desperately trying to force the air into her lungs. She briefly noted that Damon was next to her, trying to do the same thing. She also briefly noted that all she was wearing was a towel, but she didn't care. She turned to Damon to find him turning to her.

"What was that?" Elena swallowed then spoke.

"I don't even know. When did you get here?"

"I heard you hit the floor. When I touched your arm I passed out." Elena nodded, then slid her legs under her.

"So what do we do then? This can't go on. Now _Stefan's _in this."

"What a buzz kill he was." Damon said, dryly. Elena raised her eyebrows, and smiled despite herself.

"Didn't you notice in the background?"

"Notice what?"

"Jenna." Damon's brow puckered.

"What would she have to do with this?" Elena shrugged, and after that explosive dream, couldn't help noticing how perfectly smooth and sensitive the skin o her collar bone looked.

"You're asking me, who knows just as much as you do." Damon sighed, not knowing what to do.

"We're hitting dead end after dead end. Us worrying so much about this isn't helping us do anything." Elena ran her hand through her hair then got up, loosening the towel from around herself, pulling it down, smiling devilishly at Damon as…

Damon immediately opened his eyes, looked over at the sleeping Elena, thought back to last night, the night that they kissed, and sighed. He'd had dreams in his dreams, this wasn't normal. He just yawned, stretched out his arms, the laid one over Elena.

She smiled and snuggled closer to him, remembering the night and remembering the dream she'd just had, about having the dream, about exposing herself to Damon… then put it out of her mind. She could deal with it later. Right now, sleep, Damon, and some more of the two.


	9. Fate

"Damon!" Elena's voice quivered, she could hear, she knew Damon could hear it, and she knew Stefan could feel the fear pulsing through her veins. He had her by the throat, after all. Damon was by her side in the same second the thought crossed her mind.

"Get your hands off her." They'd both just woken up, Elena still in her pajamas. It had been a week since their date. Bonnie and Caroline had gotten worried, Jeremy had gotten sent away, and Matt had been weirdly absent. As had Stefan, until just this morning. Elena decided to just hang their and shut up, since only one of them had super strength, and coincidentally that was the vampire holding her up by her neck. Elena slowly pulled a dagger out from the waist band of her pajama pants as Stefan brought her face closer to his.

Damon inserted himself between Stefan and Elena, careful not to bump into the dagger Elena had pulled, and guided the stick into Stefan's ribs fast. He dropped her, and Damon quickly caught her before she hit the ground.

"Maybe you should go eat some breakfast, Elena." Elena narrowed her eyes at Damon, too nervous to leave him alone with her ex, who also happened to be his brother. Her eyes clearly said _are you sure? _Damon nodded. She rubbed his arm before she headed to the kitchen. When Damon heard her open the fridge he turned back to his brother.

"You kept her safe."

"What did you think I'd do?" Damon rolled his eyes.

"You had to save her from me."

"I did. You've gone off the rails, brother."

"She cares about you."

"I care about her."

"I love her Damon."

"So do I." Stefan nodded, turned around, and left.

Elena had been listening to the brothers' conversation. _I'm breaking them apart_, she thought.

"Elena, what did Stefan say to you? Before he had his hand around your throat?"

"He said Klaus was back in town, that he had a house, his mom and his whole family is back with him, and he's hosting a dance. He gave me this." Elena held up a sheet of paper with elegant script on it. "It's the invitation."

"When's it supposed to be?"

"Tomorrow night."

"He had to tell you that while he was trying to kill you?"

"He told me to go with him. I told him I wasn't going to go. He got… _mad_." Elena shook her head.

"We have to go."

"Why?"

"It's part of the plan." He smirked at her.

"Do I get to know what it is?"

"Not yet. You'll see soon enough." Elena sighed then looked down at her hands. Damon's came into her view as they lifted her off the ground and spun her around. Elena laughed loudly.

"There you go! Don't be sad Elena, things will be okay. Now go get dressed, we're going out."

"Oh, I was actually supposed to go meet Caroline, Bonnie, and Matt at The Grill."

"Do you mind if I come?"

"Of course not!"

"Great." He smiled.

Caroline still wasn't used to seeing Klaus daily, just like she wasn't used to seeing Elena and Damon holding hands. But, there both things were, at The Grill, in one space. Caroline started to panic but kept it contained and smiled as Elena and Damon took their seats.

"So, what's up you guys?" Caroline asked them all.

"Not much, things are pretty complicated." Bonnie said, shrugging.

"Tell me about it. I haven't spoken to Tyler since he bit me last week."

"Have you tried calling him?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, I left him dozens of voicemails and sent him loads of texts. No replies." They chatted a bit, Damon's sarcasm a welcome thing for once, before they started talking about the invitations they'd received.

"So, all of you have gotten one?"

"No, I haven't, which is a good thing I guess." Matt said.

"It is, Matt, seriously. I wonder what Klaus is up to." Caroline replied.

"Well, why don't you ask him, sweetheart?" Klaus stood at the table, smirking.

"Would you be honest with me if I did?" Caroline raised an eyebrow. As did everyone else seated at the table.

"Hmm, probably not. I do hope you'll be able to attend the dance. It'll be loads of fun." With that, he left. No one spoke about him after that.

"So, have you two been having the dreams still?" Damon and Elena looked at each other, surprised, since they'd forgotten completely about them.

"Last week was probably the last time we had them." Elena nodded. Yeah, that was about right. Was it?

"Hmm, well, I guess we can forget about those for now. Tomorrow night could go either really bad, or really well." Bonnie suggested. Caroline had her own worries about Klaus, Matt had his own broken feelings to worry about, Bonnie had her developing feelings for Matt to deal with, and Damon and Elena had Stefan, their dreams, the dance, Damon's plan, and Klaus's whole family to worry about.

Coincidentally, Stefan had been at the very back booth in The Grill, listening to the whole conversation. The dreams had finally come. He knew why. He knew why he'd shown up in one, he'd known how their subconscious have been bound together. Was he going to give up that information? Not if he had any say in the matter. Little did he know, he had absolutely no say in the matter of **fate**.


	10. Primal

Elena couldn't see anything past her nose. She couldn't see what she was walking on, what she was walking by, or who she was walking to. But she did know who she wanted to find. The dark should've been scary to her, should've induced panic, or hallucinations, but instead, she welcomed it like a childhood friend. She felt it's softness like a blanket, enveloping her, obscuring everything. She lifted her hand to drag it along the wall, feeling something very soft and downy, but moist, filling the air with a pungent scent. She felt her bare feet encountering something thick and slick, but didn't think twice about it. She was all anticipation, like a coiled spring, ready to feel hand on her, hoping they belonged to the one she wanted, to the one she _needed_. A primal need took over her, and she felt her lips pull back over her teeth. If she hadn't been so anxious to get to where she was going, she would have gotten in pounce position. But she was, so she collected herself, instead smiling at the nothingness of the place she was walking through. There was a faint buzzing in her ears, then the music. The music she had become so accustomed to, blending into something else, blending into a clear voice, singing about the beast howling in her veins. _How appropriate,_ she thought, smiling yet again as she emerged into light, embracing her new surroundings, loving how as she walked in every eye was set on her. Then she saw him. _Damon._ His head swiveled, his eyes widened as if she had said his name out loud. _Elena. _His words rang clear in her head, and she exhaled, not realizing she'd been holding her breath until she'd finally heard his voice. She saw him step through the crowd, saw every individual making room for him, spreading, so that he had a clear route from where he'd been to her. When he stood in front of her, all quieted. Her eyes swept over him, her lashes fluttering over him like little flying butterflies, before they finally rested on his eyes. The most vibrant blue she'd ever seen, the most beautiful ocean. One could drown in those eyes. He took her hand, leading her to doorway, and she glanced at the crowd. Bonnie, Caroline, the Originals, Matt, Jeremy, Alaric, Stefan, Katherine, and Jenna were among them. Elena was confused. She questioned for the first time since she'd been here what was going on, where they were. She was suddenly wary, not sure whether she could trust the people here. She glanced down at herself. Her dress was floor length, closely fitted, silk, and such a light pink that it could be mistaken as white. A heel peeked out from the bottom. _But that's not right_, she thought, _I was barefoot just a second ago. _She watched Damon's dark hair move slightly against his ear, curling around the nape of his neck. He pushed the door open, held it for her before entering behind her. She heard the door close with a light _snick _before she heard him speak.

"What are you doing here?" He walked around her, eyeing her up and down before sitting on the edge of the table. Elena took the time to examine the room he'd brought her to. There was a bed in the far left corner, windows facing it, a large writing table with parchment and several black leather bound books with black, small scrawl. It was very dark, the windows seeming to reflect images from outside. Tombstones were shown, large trees, the black of night with the full moon. She turned her gaze back to his.

"I could ask you the same thing." His gaze darkened, and he put his hand on her neck, right where her pulse should be. She could feel the pounding of it, amplified by Damon's hand pushing slightly. Her eyes closed just as his did, and before a minute had passed, his heart beats matched hers. Something about that seemed wrong, something about that seemed impossible… but she never got the chance to say that outloud. Damon's lips were immediately on hers, the pressure ensuring that hers would be swollen within seconds. She tasted blood, not sure whether it was hers or his, thinking for sure she would die from the roughness or from the pleasure, knowing a person could not feel so much at once without exploding, knowing that a person's tolerance for pain and pleasure cannot merge without causing some harm. _I can't take this_, Elena thought, _and if I can, I won't last long after it's over._ Her hands wound their way into his hair and he cried out against her mouth as…

"Elena!" She jerked awake at the sound of her name, her head disconnecting from her textbook. She was positioned oddly on the wooden chair in her living room, as if she'd tried to move off of it. She raised her eyes to the person in front of her, scared of the dream, of the direction it had taken.

"Please tell me you didn't just see that, too." Damon looked shaken.

"I wish I could, but that would be lying." Elena looked down at her homework, almost completed, then continued her work, not thinking about the state her hair must be in or how freaked out she was. She thought these things had gone away already, that they wouldn't show up anymore. It had been so nice, not having to worry about this stuff. She remembered the ball last night, she remembered leaving early because she'd been tired of the Mikaelson's, of Stefan. She sighed. _Well, at least I finished the calculus stuff. _She turned to her other work, to the essay she had to do on classic literature. She'd picked A Tale of Two Cities because she hadn't read it before, and it gave her a good excuse to. She picked up the book, excited about losing herself in it so she could at least momentarily forget about how messed up and weird everything had gotten yet again.


	11. The Beginning of the End Part 1

"Get out." Stefan told Elena, shoving her roughly towards the door.

"Stefan, stop. You need to help us figure this out."

"I don't need to help you do anything except find your way to the door."

"No. You don't need to just help _me_, you need to help _us_. And you're in this, too. You know you are. It's not even just you. It's Bonnie, and Caroline, and the Originals-"

"Elena! Do you have no regard for your safety at all? You can't speak about this at all, to anybody. You can't even think about it. The only reason this is happening is because you are _human._ Damon is getting drawn to you, dangerously so, that I'm surprised he hasn't changed you yet. These dreams… the more they happen to you, the more they occur, the more you think of them and the more Damon looks back on them… this is a curse on you Elena, it's the curse of life. This is tempting Damon. This is killing you, Elena. It's like a brain tumor. It will kill you if it spreads. And if that doesn't Damon will."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying the only way to stop this is to give in to what it wants."

"And what does it want?"

"It wants you to be a vampire. And it wants Damon to turn you."

**8 hours earlier**

Damon woke suddenly, turning on the lamp and waking Elena lying beside him in the process. She jerked up suddenly, clutching the book she fell asleep reading to her chest, then lifting a hand to rub the sleep out of her eyes.

"What, Damon? What's wrong?" He shook his head, then lifted a hand up to his face to rub his forehead.

"I think I need a blood bag. And some bourbon." As he was going to crawl out of bed, he felt a hand on his chest. Elena put down her book then gently pushed Damon back down on the bed.

"No, stay here. I'll get it for you." Damon gave a weak, thankful smile then sank back against the pillows. When Elena was out of the room, he glanced at the cover of the book she was reading. _A Tale Of Two Cities. _He smiled appreciatively.

"What's so funny?" He looked up to see Elena, glass of bourbon in one hand, blood bag in the other. She was smiling, too.

"You have good taste in books." Her smile grew.

"You've read Dickens before?"

"I'm a vampire, Elena. I'm old. Of course I have." Elena laughed, handed Damon his drink and blood, and clambered into bed beside him.

"You don't look old. And you don't seem old."

"I don't?"

"You don't. Just… mature. And maybe there's a wrinkle or two." Damon faked horror.

"That's like me saying you have stretch marks and love handles!"

"I do not! I'm 18! For all I know, you're 180!"

"Exactly. So you should respect your elders." Elena grinned, put one hand on the center of Damon's chest, and on his knee, leaning over to plant a kiss on his lips. He placed his bourbon and blood bag on the counter.

"I thought I showed you plenty of respect… and I guess to respect your elders you don't kiss them." Elena pouted just at the same time as Damon, and their bottom lips got stuck on each other.

"Who cares about respect?" Damon said, tangling his fingers in her hair and bringing her face closer until their lips brushed. Elena pulled away and smiled, then reached across Damon to hand him his blood bag so he could finish it. She brought her book onto her lap, flipping back to the chapter she'd read so often. _A Fellow Of No Delicacy_, Damon could see, and noticed Elena's sweet, sad smile.

"You're a fan of Mr. Carton?" Damon asked.

"Yes. Are you?"

"I don't know. I think was Sydney Carton did was admirable, but I'm not sure how many people can love somebody so much to sacrifice themselves like that. I understand his feeling, personally." Elena smiled.

"I do, too." She said, and he understood that she wasn't only talking about him, though he was a great deal of who she meant. Damon reached his hand up to brush hair behind her ear, and cupped the side of her head. Elena winced, closed her eyes and grit her teeth. A pain shot up her head, stabbing her in the eyes, all from where Damon touched her. Damon felt none of it. He removed his hand and looked at Elena strangely. She looked back at him.

"This is starting to get really weird, Damon. We have to do something."

"Why? What just happened?" She explained to him about the pain, and he was shocked. He knew that he'd end up hurting her himself, whether he wanted to or not. He tried to make his face betray no emotions of his, but Elena knew him, and she knew he'd blame himself whether he was right to or not.

"The way to solve this will be easy once we find out what's causing it, right? _We're_ not causing it. So something else must be."

"How do we go about figuring this out, Sherlock?"

"It's elementary, my dear Holmes." Elena said, in a purposely bad imitation, and winked at him. "We interrogate the prime suspects. Haven't you ever watched Law and Order?"

"Okay, but in the morning. We need to get some sleep."

"Technically, it already is morning." Damon looked at the clock next to the bed. 4:00.

"There's no sun yet."

"It's supposed to be cloudy today, and rainy." Damon rolled his eyes.

"Fine, do you want to get up now then?" Elena thought about it.

"No." Damon was thoroughly confused, and so was Elena. Her head felt kind of weird, like hazy, and she hadn't been thinking straight. "Ignore me, my head's being weird. Let's just try to go back to sleep. Are you done with the blood bag?" Damon laid it on the dresser.

"Forget about it, we'll throw it out in the morning. Go to sleep." And because he told her to, she did.

Damon, however, could not fall asleep. He thought, and he thought, and he thought. He wasn't afraid for himself, he was terrified for Elena. He needed a blood bag this morning to fight the temptation that her warm body was to him. He loved her, so, so much, but would that be enough to protect her from him? _These dreams are getting to be very bad, they're hurting us. Will we be able to stop them? _Then Damon remembered Rose. He felt his thoughts rear back. _Somebody's putting these into our heads. _This vampire had to be very strong, very old, and very experienced to do this. _How can we go up against that? _

Damon reached for his phone and sent a series of messages. One to Matt:

_I know you don't owe me anything and that you probably won't want to help, but please, do this for Elena. Come to the boarding house in the morning and tell Elena not to come after me. Please look after her. At noon today, tell her to go to Stefan's. She'll know what to ask. And if she doesn't already know, tell her I love her. _

Damon got no response, and he took that positively. It meant Matt would come and comply, and Damon was grateful. He wouldn't put Elena in anymore danger than he'd already had, and he'd hoped she'd understand, though maybe that was asking too much.

The next text was sent to Stefan:

_Tell Elena everything you know. There's no hiding now. She's to come by at noon today. Answer her questions, fill in the blanks. There won't be any more secrets. I may not have any blanks anymore, but you have to tell her what's going to happen to her if I don't do what I have to. If you ever loved her, you'll do this. _

Damon got no response from his brother, unaware that Stefan had been entertaining company. Rebekah, or shall we say Rebekah's mother, was sitting across from him. She spoke in Rebekah's voice and hid in Rebekah's skin but the words were her mothers.

"This is how things must be. If she continues to be with him, she must be a vampire. It is dangerous otherwise. If he does not change her, does not allow her to be changed, I'll kill him."

"You could've just gone to him and said that. Why torture Elena in that way? Do you think that you're being much less of a monster?"

"I'm trying to help her-"

"No you're not, you're trying to kill her and take away her choices! She's a human, a luxury that we'd once had but now do not, and you're taking that away from her? You haven't even spoken to her, you have barely even seen her, and you're making this up for her? Who do you think you are? My brother and I have worked and worked to protect her from things like… you, for occurrences like these, and you shamelessly come here to distribute this information like I'm supposed to nod and tell you to go right along with this plan."Stefan laughed a humorless laugh and shook his head as if asking, _Why me? How did I get wrapped up in this?, _and getting no answer, turned his attention back to the witch that started this whole mess only to find himself alone.

"Well, thanks for stopping by." He muttered to himself then checked his phone. Reading Damon's message, he closed his eyes, scared out of his mind and hating that he had to be in the middle of this. _This is probably how Damon felt when _I _was the one with Elena._ The thought hit him suddenly, and he was sure that now their roles were reversed, and that one thing hadn't changed-both the brothers would do whatever they could to protect Elena, no matter what. And that's what he'd do. _She'll come by today at noon and I'll tell her everything. _

Damon was getting ready to go at 6:00, before Elena would have to get up on Saturday morning and let the tears fall freely from his eyes. The last he'd done this, he'd been human. Now, he was scared to leave someone as close to him as his skin, but he knew he had to do this, give himself up so that this girl, this beautiful, wonderful, youthful, mature, angel of his who had nothing to do with this world in the beginning and should have had nothing to do with it could have a normal life away from all this garbage. He just hoped she'd understand, that's all he hoped for, not for his death to not be certain, not for his plan to work, not for his tears to stop falling, not even for Elena to keep loving him. Just for Elena to understand.

He started writing her a note:

_Please understand that I'm doing this for you. Please don't come after me, please don't worry about me. Go about your life like you did before I ever came into your life, before either Stefan or me came into your life. I know I promised you I'd never do what Edward did to Bella in New Moon, but this is your life I'm talking about. Reality. And the reality is, I'm a vampire and I've brought you nothing but misery disguised as happiness. You've given me the best memories anybody can have, and I've given you an endless array of problems to deal with. The reality is, I love you. I always have and I always will. To quote a book, 'I have loved you before, and I will love you again. The time returns'. _

_Yours in life, and in death,_

_Damon _

He turned back, looked at her form, lying sideways facing his side of the bed. The covers clung to her, and the indentation from her shoulder to her hip was tempting him, calling to him to forget about being noble and doing the right thing, and just putting his hand in the curve of her waist. But instead, he kissed her lips lightly, then her forehead, then lightly kissed her closed eyes. He left the note on his pillow. He turned around and left the house, feeling like his heart stopped beating yet again as he walked away.

Matt awoke early, quickly tossing on a blue t-shirt, red sweater, and red basketball shorts. He ran to the boarding house, thinking starting the car would cause too much commotion, and might wake Elena early. He knew she was going to want to save Damon, and he wanted to make sure he got there before she was awake. No luck. He walked into the house with Elena dressed in black jeans, a black tank top that fit close to her body, and a brown leather jacket. Her brown boots went all the way up to her knees. When she saw Matt, fresh tears sprung to her eyes.

"He's not here." Matt walked over and put his arms around her. She put her face in his chest, sobbing these awful sobs, he was surprised that blood wasn't coming from her eyes. These tears seemed to come right from her heart. He'd never heard her cry like that.

"I know." He said gently. When she pulled away, he handed her a tissue and she smiled a watery, grateful smile. "Listen, Damon sent me a text early this morning. He told me to come over in the morning, to tell you not to come after him. He told me to tell you to go to Stefan's at noon." Elena closed her eyes, taking a steadying breath, and when she opened her eyes Matt was surprised to see a steely, determined expression on her face.

"Okay, at noon we're going to Stefan's. Hopefully, he'll tell us where Damon went so we can go get him and then he's going to have to face _my _wrath. I'm going to whoop his _ass_. Until then, we need to get everybody. We need to get Caroline-an extra vampire wouldn't hurt-Bonnie, and we should probably grab Jeremy, too."

"Why?"

"Don't you think whoever has Damon right now doesn't have a ton of people with them? They think that they're strong enough on their own. If we go up against them with a group, it might throw them off." Matt nodded and Elena noticed a muscle in his jaw jump. _He's nervous. _

"Matt?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry you got pushed into this."

"I'm sorry you did, too." Elena nodded, and laughed a laugh lacking humor.

"This whole situation was screwed up from the start." Matt nodded. "But there is no way that I'm letting Damon die because of it."

"I think that's the reason he's giving himself up. How do you know he's going to die?"

"Something was up with him last night. He was talking differently. Kind of like it would be the last conversation he'd have with me. He figured something out, he figured out something about the dreams."

"And you think that involved a person?"

"I know it did. He wouldn't just ditch me and tell me to move on with my life for no reason. He found something. We thought from the beginning someone was doing this to us. He probably figured out who."

"Or maybe that's what he left to figure out." Elena nodded.

"Probably. He wouldn't leave without talking to Stefan first, that's why he told me to go to him at noon. We'll wait to hear what he says. If he tells me nothing, then I'll take you back home."

"What will you do?" Elena looked at Matt.

"I'm going to investigate. I'll find him, Matt. I have to."

"Okay. Let's go round up everyone." Matt noticed that as everyone piled into the car, Elena touched a pocket that crinkled, and that at one point, she pulled out a piece of paper from the same pocket and brought it to her lips, her eyes closed, tears slipping out and trailing feather light down her cheeks. Matt had never seen Elena so torn up but so strong at once, and he drew strength from her steely determination.

"Matt?" Bonnie, Caroline, and Elena asked at once.

"Yeah?"

"What time is it now?" He quickly glanced at the radio to see.

"11:00." Everyone turned to Elena, except Matt, who glanced at Elena through the mirror since he was the one driving.

"Let's go to Stefan's." Matt nodded and turned. Within minutes, they were parked. Elena was the first person at the door, taking out keys-_Damon's_, everyone knew-and unlocked the front door. Everyone walked in after her. Stefan stepped out and was surprised to come face to face with Elena. She looked… angry, and serious, and not like someone you'd mess with.

"Where is he?"

"Who?"

"Don't play dumb."

"I don't know to whom you're referring-"

"CUT THE CRAP, STEFAN! Where the HELL is Damon?" Elena exploded, forceful.

"He's trying to make sure you stay alive."

"That wasn't my question." Stefan could see Bonnie and Caroline, standing close behind Elena. He saw Matt put his hand on Bonnie's shoulder, and the other on Caroline's. He was scared out of his mind, and still helping Elena. Why couldn't she have fallen in love with him?

"Damon sent me a message last night, and I got the sense that he knew about some parts of the story, but not everything. He told me to tell you all I know."

"And what is it you know?"

"I know that Rebekah's mother came to me last night-in Rebekah's body-and said that she's been putting the dreams in yours and Damon's head."

"And why did Damon have to leave because of that?" The way that Elena asked the question angered Stefan, reason unknown to him, and he couldn't push his anger down.

"Get out." Stefan told Elena, shoving her roughly towards the door.

"Stefan, stop. You need to help us figure this out."

"I don't need to help you do anything except find your way to the door."

"No. You don't need to just help _me_, you need to help _us_. And you're in this, too. You know you are. It's not even just you. It's Bonnie, and Caroline, and the Originals-"

"Elena! Do you have no regard for your safety at all? You can't speak about this at all, to anybody. You can't even think about it. The only reason this is happening is because you are _human._ Damon is getting drawn to you, dangerously so, that I'm surprised he hasn't changed you yet. These dreams… the more they happen to you, the more they occur, the more you think of them and the more Damon looks back on them… this is a curse on you Elena, it's the curse of life. This is tempting Damon. This is killing you, Elena. It's like a brain tumor. It will kill you if it spreads. And if that doesn't Damon will."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying the only way to stop this is to give in to what it wants, or for Damon to die."

"And what does it want?"

"It wants you to be a vampire. And it wants Damon to turn you."

"But Damon can't know that it's Rebekah's mother that's doing this, and that she's in Rebekah's body, or even where she is right now, can he?"

Stefan closed his eyes. "When Damon and I first realized our feelings for you, we promised each other we'd protect you no matter what the situation. And that's what we're trying to do." Elena got scared, very scared, for the first time that day.

"Stefan…"

"I told him this morning. I called him and told him."

"Where is he, Stefan?"

"I can't tell you. Elena, she's going to take everything from y-"

"SHE ALREADY HAS! This whole vampire shit had wrecked my life already! But Damon hasn't! I need to get him back, and so help me god you are going to help me or else I will kick your ass. Tell me where that dumb ass, brave man went right now, Stefan." He remained silent. "I don't regret meeting you, or Damon. I don't. I don't care that my social life has diminished, I can deal with all the drama, but I can't deal living my life without Damon, Stefan. Don't you understand that?"

"Do you remember where Katherine's tomb was?" Elena nodded. "He'll be there. Hopefully you'll make it in time."

"Thank you." And in single file, they left Stefan's, him not offering help or providing any consolation. Bonnie and Caroline didn't know how they could stop the Original's mother, but they knew that Elena would do anything to save him. She drove this time, with Caroline and Bonnie sitting on either side of Matt.

"Elena goes in first. Damon will automatically see her." Bonnie said.

"But what if someone tries to hurt her?" Caroline asked.

"There's no danger in that happening, mother dear is just trying to 'help'." Said Matt.

"I'm already hurt, you guys. I'll be fine. And I have a plan, already."

"You do?"

"Yes. I'm going to talk to her. If that fails, I'll tell her I'll change."

"You don't mean-"

"Yes, I mean into a vampire."

"Do you happen to have another plan?"

"I brought a stake. I don't think it'll do anything, though."

"I called Katherine." Bonnie said. Elena nodded.

"I thought you would."

"She said she has a stake she could use to kill Rebekah and her mom in the process."

"Okay then, new plan." The plan discussed, they stopped at the side of the road and saw Katherine. She'd changed so she looked exactly like Elena.

"Alrighty then, let's get this show on the road!" She sat next to Elena, and before we knew it, we arrived. Elena jumped out of the car. She grabbed that she had in a compartment of her car and wrote messages.

_Caroline, Katherine-keep an ear out. If anything sounds suspicious, come. _

_Matt-you and Katherine know what to do_

_Bonnie-if all else fails, we do the spell_

_Thank you all so much. Katherine, we wouldn't have a plan if you hadn't agreed to do this. Thank you. _

Katherine looked up, shocked, and smiled. She hugged her, rubbing her back.

"You just go get him back." Katherine whispered. Walking around the trees, she stepped through the bushes and into a candle filled field.

"Stop!" Elena called. Damon turned around and she ran to him, right into his arms. He caught her, reflexively.

"You shouldn't be here, Elena."

"Well, I am."

"Hello, Elena." She turned her attention to Rebekah, or her mother, and nodded.

"Please let me take him home."

"I can't. He'll kill you."

"The remove the spell you put on us. Then he won't."

"What kind of lesson would that teach you? Absolutely none. And all the trouble I went through would be for nothing." Suddenly, a scream sounded through the night and Matt stumbled through, a mound of blood spilling across his body. Bonnie was whispering incantations somewhere, creating a circle around Matt. Rebekah's figure walked towards Matt, though her mother inside hadn't wanted to. Rebekah had feelings for Matt, she wanted to see whether he was alright. She was forcing her mother to go forth and heal him. She stepped within the circle. Only then did she notice her mistake. She couldn't leave it, she was trapped. Katherine stepped out with the stake and stealthily threw it so that it landed right through her heart. Rebekah's face morphed into her mother's until she faded away to ash, both of them.

Automatically, Elena and Damon felt a slackening in their minds, like a powerful band had been taken off of their brains, and they smiled at each other.

"You're okay?" Elena asked Damon.

"Yes, I'm fine." Elena noticed blood on Damon's chest, arms, hands, legs. His shirt was unbuttoned.

"Let's get you home, you need to be cleaned up." Damon, leaning heavily on Elena, pretended not to see her tears though they hurt him.

"You guys, thank you so much!" Elena hugged each and every one of her friends, even Katherine. They all smiled at her. Damon smiled at each of them.

"Thank you all very much." The smiled and nodded.

"It's what we do." They all said. The night went on, Elena dropped everybody off at their house, then once we got home, she opened the door and helped me inside. I was grateful to finally be home. But they had unfinished business.

"Hey Elena?" Elena poked her head inside the washroom, where I sat taking a bath. She blushed slightly.

"Yeah?"

"I need to tell you something."


	12. The Beginning of the End Part 2

**Okay you guys, this is the last chapter! For the people that followed this tale, even when I updated awfully slow, thank you very much! Your reviews were much appreciated, and if you guys like my writing style, and if you guys like Jane by Design, I've started a new fanfiction featuring Billy and Jane! I promise to update better! Again, thank you all very much!**

"What's up?"

"How did you find out where I was?"

"I went to Stefan." She seemed confused. "Why?"

"I told you not to come after me, right?" She raised an eyebrow.

"If I left you like that, with a note like that, when all this messed up stuff was going on, would you have listened to me either?"

"Probably not." She raised a brow. "Okay, okay, no I wouldn't."

"Okay then. There you go."

"Thank you, Elena. Really." Elena smiled, thought for a while, then blushed. She was wearing a white fluffy robe.

"What?" Damon asked, worried. She gave him a sly grin.

"Remember that one time we had a dream that I removed my towel in front of you?"

"Yeah…" If he could've blushed, he would've. She closed the bathroom door.

"Well, I'm wearing a robe now, but… how would you like for that to become a reality?" Damon was shocked.

"Elena… you don't have to do that. We have a long time to get there, I mean…"

"Damon, we know we love each other."

"I know, I just don't want to do anything you'll regret."

"I won't regret this. I'll regret it if I miss my chance when I have you all to myself right now and you won't slip from my fingers."

"Can you pass me a towel?" Elena nodded, turned around to grab one, and felt hands around her waist. Wet hands. Her fingers loosened on the towel before it was taken from her hands.

"Thanks." He smirked and winked at her. He held out his hand and she took it. He seemed nervous, too, and she took courage from that.

"Okay, if I hurt you, or hold you too tightly, tell me. Understand?"

"Elena nodded."

"Okay." The robe and towel were soon on the floor. An hour passed, and the two were both slick with sweat, lying side by side, facing each other. Elena's hair fanned around her head like a dark halo. Damon reached down to kiss her and she met him halfway. She hugged him to her, and he thought _I am the luckiest man in the world. _

"I'm so happy you're okay and back home with me." She whispered to him. He smiled.

"I am, too." And for the first time in a long time, they welcomed sleep when it came, knowing that in the morning they would still have each other. And the morning after that, and the morning after that, and the morning after that…

The End

(or just the beginning?)


End file.
